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  Discussion on Manure Management on mini farm
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Member:
travelle

Posted on Wednesday, Jul 30, 2008 - 4:03 pm:

I am sure this question has been asked many times but here we go again. All opinions welcome please.
We have a mini farm of 6 acres. We currently have 4 horses and 4 goats. We plan on having up to 7 horses. 2 are permanent. I am co-founder of a rescue operation so the other horses are more transient. Currently we pay a dumpster company to come once a week but the cost is exorbitant (180.00a month and rising with fuel costs) We were thinking of buying a spreader and spreading certain sections each week then aerating and seeding.
1. Do I have to separate the manure and shavings. I'm lazy:-)
2. Do we have enough land to make this a viable option? We would pick a section a week so each section would only be hit around every 3 months.
3. Any other suggestions.
Thanks so much!
Member:
muffi

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 1:38 am:

I take my manure and shavings and make trails on the property with them - but I cover thick. I break up the balls (manally - you should see my pipes!!!) to keep the flys away - not sure how much you get out of the back end of a Mini in one day but 7 babies probably equal my two monsters output - I would say about 50 - 60 pounds a day. in Ohio you have more rain than us. so that should help to have soft balls to break up. If you have a spreader then YAY on you. I plan on getting one some day (on the wish list) but poop spreading on the trail is my exercise routine twice a day - cheap Gym...
so the question is do you have designated trails? it makes a great footfall. A lot of Pro Barns in my area do that too I noticed so I am not the only one.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 5:57 am:

Hello Sarah,
1) No but you may have to fertilize with a bit more nitrogen to help decomposition.
2) That means you will have your land divided into about 14 paddocks. 7 horses on 6 acres total is going to be tough: how many actual acres are in pasture?
3) Be sure the horses are dewormed well so that parasites are not spread back on the pasture.

Note that composting the stall cleanings first gets around the parasite/fertilizer problem.
DrO
Member:
travelle

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 8:04 am:

Hi All
Sorry for the confusion. I have a mini (meaning small farm:-) At the time all my horses are average size no mini horses.
Thanks for any advice.
Sarah
Member:
scooter

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 1:31 pm:

Hi Sarah, Being lazy also. I harrow my pastures in the summer when it's hot, supposedly that helps keep the worm count down...the hot sun dries the manure quickly.

The stuff I clean out of the lean-to goes in a pile (shavings and all) that gets spread in a farmers field in the fall and spring....we have spread it in the pasture in a pinch, but prefer not to. I have 3 horses on about half an acre, this has worked well....flies aren't bad and have never had a problem with worms....tho I do have a closed herd.

If you let your pile compost you'll be surprised how much it shrinks.
Member:
jojo15

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 2:20 pm:

rotation is key. Even on my small 1.5 acre i rotate. Albiet, not much. Have 3 dry paddocks. and 2 larger grass areas. Now the only issues i've recently had were from the goats. and i'm going thru it now. haemonchus. but i've brought in new goats recently. Who i think brought in a bit of resistance. Mixing the two species is a good thing too.

In the past i would spread, yes you should separate the shaving from manure if you plan to put down quickly. If you do what Dr. O mentions that works too. I think the shavings do help in the breakdown during compost but not when you throw down manure immediately. And you can always buy a few worms to speed up your compost pile. chickens TOO! my guys can go thru a new pile in a few days. and then i just reform the loose pile and in about 2 weeks they revist it again. So if i have about 2 to three piles that keeps them very busy.

I took the back fenceline and would throw it back there to cold compost in sections. Its not an exact science but i would get a feel for it when it was "broken" down enough. Add a few chickens and they will help the process even further. But i would say if it takes 3 months to hot compost it takes about 5 to cold. cold is the "lazy" mans way. :-)
Been doin it this way for 5 years. and the goat issue is the first time i've had any kind of issue. :-( if i bring new onto the property i am going to follow the 3 week protocol of worming as they get here. follow up again in the 2-3rd week. and have them away from the main group till week 4. I would think the same would go for the horses? On 6 acres i would think this is doable...
Member:
travelle

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 4:44 pm:

Thanks all
My husband just bought the newer spreader and we are going to go for it. We figure one week of spreading. Next week to seed then go to next area and each area should only be hit every 3-4 months. I also am going to order some Diatemaceous earth food grade (sp?) for worm control.
Member:
muffi

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 7:07 pm:

let me know what you think of that newer spreader - Been eyeing it for awhile my self...
Member:
amara

Posted on Thursday, Jul 31, 2008 - 9:11 pm:

jojo, what kind of worms and where do you get them?..I also have a "mini" farm (i.e. small farm, not small horses)(ok, the pony is short!). my outer fenceline is all mesh fence, and in most areas the fence is pretty solid, but in some areas the ground has eroded and there are some gaps to the ground. Since i like to let my dogs run around in there when I'm home I take the manure I pick up and put it on the fencelines, but I do also have a small manure pile and would love to get it smaller. Hopefully sometime next year I will have enough money to start buying equipment and can start spreading.
Member:
imogen

Posted on Friday, Aug 1, 2008 - 2:24 am:

I am even lazier than Diane (and there's little evidence harrowing does much in temperate wet climates). I just rotate but I have the luxury of a lot of land although we do also take hay.

What I do have is straw and manure stable waste for 3 months of the year. I use a typical 3-bay compost heap and compost it with the vegetable waste etc. which works well. There is a neat guide on how to do this from the Minnesota extension services on the web (sorry don't have the URL) using pallets.

Imogen
Member:
jerre

Posted on Friday, Aug 1, 2008 - 11:19 am:

I have two horses and small turnouts at home, although much of the year they are also in a 20-acre field next door. I don't do any manure management of the big field (it's not mine) except what gets hit when I mow my 1/2 acre flattish riding area.

At home, I bed very lightly with pellets. My horses are mares and choose only a couple of spots to pile on, so my manure pile is mostly manure. The pellets break down so much better than shavings and my pile gets hot in a day. It also settles way faster than when I was using shavings.

When it's cooked down, I spread it wherever I can -- fill in holes in the lawn, top off the garden beds, give it away to anyone who will come. It's always a good feeling when I take the last bucketload out of the pile!

I usually have one pile building up and one getting dispersed. At full size, they're about 10x20x6-high.

Jerre
Member:
jojo15

Posted on Friday, Aug 1, 2008 - 12:51 pm:

Melissa, type in worms for compost. or check out any reptile farms. you can buy worms locally at any reptile store i bet. Any worms will do. :-)

Though i have to say the chickens like the worms. so that posed a bit of a problem. So if you get one might not need the other. As that is what they are searching for. the grubs and the worms. I haven't bought worms this summer. there are lots of people that create their own worm farm. then they put them in the pile. and replenish on their own. too funny. but works great.
Member:
erika

Posted on Friday, Aug 1, 2008 - 10:30 pm:

A friend told me her secret for manure removal--put an ad in the paper for "manure, $10 a pick up load". She sold it all within days.
When she put in the "free manure" ads, no one came!
Member:
lilo

Posted on Saturday, Aug 2, 2008 - 4:09 pm:

Erika - that is funny - people would rather pay than pick up manure for free??? They must think when it costs something, it is better. Lilo
Member:
leslie1

Posted on Saturday, Aug 2, 2008 - 5:29 pm:

LOLOL
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